This invention relates to a condenser which is particularly designed for use with a refrigeration apparatus of the type in which a refrigerant fluid in gaseous form is compressed to pressurize the gas and then passed through a condenser under pressure in which the gas is cooled to form a liquid phase which is subsequently expanded and allowed to evaporate thus extracting heat from the area surrounding the evaporator. Such arrangements can be used in a refrigeration apparatus or in a heat pump apparatus to transfer heat between the evaporator section and the condenser section in a well known manner.
Condensers for apparatus of this type generally comprise a simple tube or pipe which is bent to form convolutions. The gas under pressure is fed to an upper end of the pipe with the gas gradually passing through the pipe, gradually cooling and thus reaching the dew point at which it condenses in the pipe. The liquid thus formed runs down the pipe to be collected at the lower end for further circulation through the circuit. Such condensers can be provided by a simple single pipe or a much larger arrangements can include a header which connects to a number of separate pipes running in convoluted path in generally parallel relation from the upper gas injection header to the lower liquid collection header. In many cases cooling of the outer surface of the pipe is carried out merely by convection of air from the outer surface. In with this case fins can be provided to assist in transferring heat from the pipe to the air. In other cases water can be sprayed onto the outer surface of the pipes.
In any apparatus or plant of this type, the size of the condenser is a significant cost in the total plant cost. It is therefore an ongoing objective to improve the efficiency of the condenser so that its size and therefore cost can be significantly reduced.